Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Friday appointed former Premier Shahid Khaqan Abbasi as senior vice president and Maryam Nawaz, the daughter of Nawaz Sharif, as vice president of the party. The development comes after Shahbaz Sharif stepped down as chairman Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Thursday, which also led to speculations that Sharif might not come back.
According to a PML-N statement issued by party President Shehbaz Sharif from London and released to media here, the decision about the organisational changes has been taken in consultation with PML-N Quaid Nawaz Sharif. Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Ahsan Iqabal will be senior vice president and secretary general of the PML-N.
For the first time, Maryam Nawaz has been given the position of PML-N vice president who will be among the 16 vice presidents appointed by the party. Others who have also been appointed as vice presidents included Abid Sher Ali, Ayaz Sadiq, Ch Barjees Tahir, Dr Darshan Lal Punchi, Hamza Shahbaz Sharif, Khawaja Saad Rafiq, Khurram Dastgir, Mian Javed Latif, Muhammad Zubair, Mushahid Ullah Khan, Nelson Azeem, Pervaiz Rasheed, Raheela Durrani, Rana Tanveer Hussain and Sardar Mehtab Ahmed Khan.
Balighu-ur-Rehman and Attaullah Tarar will act as the deputy secretary generals of the party while Marriyam Aurangzeb will continue as secretary information and the PML-N spokesperson. Former finance minister Ishaq Dar has also been appointed as the president of PML-N's international affairs and Noor ul Hassan Tanvir as General Secretary International Affairs.
Bilal Azhar Kiyani, Farhan Zafar Jhagra and Sorath Thebo have been appointed as assistant secretary generals while Abbas Afridi and Talal Chaudhry as joint secretaries.
Pervez Malik will be PML-N secretary finance, Tariq Fatemi as secretary policy and research, Shaza Fatima Khawaja, secretary parliamentary affairs, Ayesha Raza Farooq, secretary membership & training, and Romina Khursheed Alam will be secretary HR & civil society.
The party also announced the organisational positions in Punjab, Sindh and Karachi.
In Punjab, Rana Sanaullah has been appointed as the provincial president of the PML-N while Sardar Awais Leghari as the party's secretary general. Other office-bearers in Punjab included Hanif Abbasi as senior vice president and four vice presidents including Raja Ateeq Sarwar, Hafiz Nauman, Khawaja Salman Rafiq and Raja Qamar-ul-Islam. Azma Bukhari will be the PML-N secretary information for Punjab.
In Sindh, Miftah Ismail has been appointed as secretary general and Ali Akbar Gujjar as senior vice president. Salman Ali Khan has also been appointed as the PML-N president for Karachi and Nasir-ud-Din Mehmood as general secretary.
The party has also constituted a 13-member economic advisory council including Shehbaz Sharif, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Ishaq Dar, Khawaja Asif, Qaiser Sheikh, Mohammad Zubair, Miftah Ismail, Ayesha Ghaus Pasha, Mushahid Hussain Syed, Musaddik Malik, Ali Pervez Malik and Bilal Azhar Kiyani as its members.
It stated that the already existed party's organisational structure at central and provincial levels will remain unchanged.
Meanwhile, divisions have been appeared within the PML-N following Shehbaz Sharif's decision to step down as chairman of the PAC as speculations are rife the party has been divided into two groups with leaders including Khawaja Saad Rafique, Khawaja Asif, Rana Tanvir and Javed Latif supportive of Nawaz Sharif's narrative, while Mushahidullah Khan, Barjees Tahir and others are advising the party leadership to show patience and wait for right time to come.